On Tuesday last week, the US House of Representatives passed the Taiwan International Solidarity Act, which is to proceed to the US Senate for a review. If the bill is passed by the Senate, it is to be sent to the White House and come into effect when US President Joe Biden signs it into law.
The law is of great significance to Taiwan’s international participation. Here are some key points for readers to quickly grasp it:
Through “congressional legislation,” the purpose of the bill is to clarify facts, correct international views and concretely demonstrate US support for Taiwan.
First, through such bipartisan cooperation, the US Congress has put into practice the great importance that it attaches to Taiwan, to counter China’s vicious action of distorting UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 to hinder Taiwan’s participation in the international community.
Second, China unilaterally claims that UN Resolution 2758 has recognized that “Taiwan is a part of China,” and directly interprets this as the “one China principle.” It misleads the international community, and belittles Taiwan by depriving it of sovereignty.
Third, the bill says: “The US opposes any initiative that seeks to change Taiwan’s status without the people’s consent.”
Fourth, representatives of both main political parties — from the Republican Party’s Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Michael McCaul to the Democratic Party’s Gregory Meeks, a ranking member of the committee — have publicly expressed support for the bill, saying that Taiwan’s exclusion from the UN system is a loss to the international community and the global system.
The bill argues that the aforementioned UN resolution only addressed the issue of “China’s representation” to the UN, and it did not involve Taiwan.
First, the resolution only addressed the issue of “China’s representation,” as the bill states that it established the representatives of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) government as the only lawful representatives of China and its people.
Second, the UN expelled then-president Chiang Kai-shek’s (蔣介石) Republic of China (ROC) government, and it recognized the PRC government as the only lawful representative of China.
Third, the resolution indicated the “three noes” (三個沒有): Not a single word is about “Taiwan” in the text, and it does not recognize Taiwan as a part of the PRC’s territory. In addition, it does not authorize the PRC to represent Taiwan and its people in the UN.
Taiwan belongs to the world, not exclusively to China. Even if China continues to threaten and oppress Taiwan, this would not shake our determination to walk toward the world.
Meanwhile, with the international community’s firm support for the country, Taiwan is to definitely become a key force for peace, prosperity and sustainable development in the region and the world.
Su Wei-cheng is a university lecturer and a former secretary of the speaker of the Legislative Yuan.
Translated by Eddy Chang
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